There has been a burgeoning interest in psychedelics among the public, state legislatures, psychiatrists and other clinical providers, and within the research community. Increasing numbers of studies evaluating psychedelics for depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, and substance use disorders have been conducted or are underway. While discussin...
Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Clinical & ResearchFull AccessAustralia Legalizes Psychedelics for Use in Depression, PTSD TherapyNick ZagorskiNick ZagorskiSearch for more papers by this authorPublished Online:15 Aug 2023https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.pn.2023.09.9.20AbstractThe country is the first to make psilocybin and MDMA available ...
Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Annual MeetingFull AccessExperts Offer Tips on Talking With Patients About PsychedelicsTerri D’ArrigoTerri D’ArrigoSearch for more papers by this authorPublished Online:28 Jun 2023https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.pn.2023.07.7.51AbstractPsychedelics differ from one another in their mechanism of action and po...
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that occurs as a result of a traumatic experience. Symptoms include feeling anxious, flashbacks, nightmares and difficulty sleeping. Several studies indicate that psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy (PaP) may be an effective treatment for a number of mental health conditions. This has led to Pa...
Psychedelic substances are under investigation in several drug development programs. Controlled clinical trials are providing evidence for safe and effective use of psychedelic therapies for treating mental health conditions. With the anticipated FDA approval of MDMA-assisted therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder in 2023 and psilocybin therapy for depres...
BACKGROUND: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression are highly comorbid. Psilocybin exerts substantial therapeutic effects on depression by promoting neuroplasticity. Fear extinction is a key process in the mechanism of first-line exposure-based therapies for PTSD. We hypothesized that psilocybin would facilitate fear extinction by promoting hipp...
Inflammation is an organism’s biological defense mechanism. Acute and chronic inflammation of the body triggers the production of pro- and anti-inflammatory pathways that can affect the content of cytokines in the brain and thus cause brain inflammation. Disorders such as depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are often associated with elevated ...
The detrimental effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms (PTSS) and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the benefits of Post-Traumatic Growth (PTG) are well established for cancer survivors. Increased cancer survival rates necessitate an understanding of how these two paradoxical outcomes, PTSS/PTSD and PTG, are targeted through interventions. This sy...
INTRODUCTION: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression are common in service members and veterans, and the response to currently available treatments is often modest at best. Recent studies suggest potential benefit with psychedelic-assisted therapies (PATs), particularly 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine-assisted therapy for PTSD and psilocybin-a...
The therapeutic use of psilocybin, the active ingredient in “magic mushrooms,” is revolutionizing mental health care for a number of conditions, including depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and end-of-life care. This has spotlighted the current state of knowledge of psilocybin, including the organisms that endogenously produce it.
Mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety are major contributors to the overall global health burden. COVID-19 has further aggravated mental health disorders and also increased substance abuse due to lockdowns1. The Global Burden of Disease reported that the pandemic has led to a 27.6% increase in cases of major depressive disorder (MDD) and a 2...
In clinical trials, some participants with depression and posttraumatic stress disorder report improvements to their mental health after treatment with psychedelic substances, while others report no significant effect. A team at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has now reported that natural variations in a serotonin receptor could affect how s...
Psychiatric illnesses - such as major depressive disorder, anxiety disorder, substance use disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) - are widely prevalent and represent a substantial health burden worldwide. Yet, conventional medications for mental illnesses often fail to provide relief to patients' disruptive and disabling symptoms. Existing and e...
Abstract Objective: Psychedelic-assisted therapies are emerging as safe and effective treatments for some psychological conditions including depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, and substance use disorders. As ketamine therapy is already available in general medicine and 3,4 Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and psilocybin are in late-stage...
Psychedelics such as lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), psilocybin (magic mushrooms), and mescaline exhibit intense effects on the human brain and behaviour. In recent years, there has been a surge in studies investigating these drugs because clinical studies have shown that these once banned drugs are well tolerated and efficacious in medically supervised lo...
Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Annual MeetingFull AccessDemystifying Psychedelic Treatments in Psychiatry: Is Ego Dissolution the Solution?Michael Avissar, M.D., Ph.D., Adrian Jacques Ambrose, M.D., M.P.H.Michael AvissarSearch for more papers by this author, M.D., Ph.D., Adrian Jacques AmbroseSearch for more papers by this author, M....
Over the past decade, psychedelic compounds like psilocybin and ecstasy have emerged as potentially life-changing treatments for mental illnesses, including major depressive disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder. Read on to learn how some companies are trying to bring these once-demonized drugs to market and how others are hoping to use chemistry to eli...
Rationale & objectives ± 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and psilocybin are currently moving through the US Food and Drug Administration's phased drug development process for psychiatric treatment indications: posttraumatic stress disorder and depression, respectively. The current standard of care for these disorders involves treatment with psychiat...
Legislation to establish a foundation for clinical studies of psilocybin or mushrooms had been introduced in Pennsylvania last fall. The bill would fund clinical trials to address post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in veterans and first responders.